Aspen (The Dragon Kings #2)(42)

“Yeah, like that.” Aspen wasn’t sure what to think of this development. She was sad that Skye would never feel the same way.

“I’d seen yours and Pearl’s. I was terrified to say anything though because I didn’t know what it meant. Skye can never know. I didn’t know it was because of her.”

“You should tell her.”

Rowan squeezed his eyes shut. “No. Aspen, I can’t do that. Please keep this secret for me.”

“Of course. But you really should tell her.”

“Why?”

“Because if she ever falls in love with you back, neither of you will ever be able to love another. How long have you had it?”

Rowan shrugged. “A few days.”

Aspen whistled. “You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into.”





“Come on, Runa, we’re all going to bed.” Aspen stood in the doorway of the theater room with Sid behind her.


“No, I don’t want to. Skye’s teaching me lessons.”

“Sounds like she’s just telling you stories.”

Runa stuck her tongue out at Aspen. “One more story. Come sit with me.” She bobbed her head up and down.

“Okay, one more, but then we are all going to bed.” Aspen sat next to the little dragon, and she crawled up onto Aspen’s lap.

Sid settled down by Aspen and looked at Skye. “Have you told her the story about the three dragon kings yet?”

“No, that’s a good one.”

Runa watched Skye with wide eyes.

“Once upon a time there was a good king. His followers loved him. Except an evil white dragon from the north. She was powerful and used magic many dragons had forgotten. She became known as the evil white witch. She didn’t like the king and wanted to take over, but she was a smart dragon and waited until the king showed weakness.”

“What kind of weakness?” Runa asked.

“One that would make it easy for her to become queen of the dragons. She didn’t know what kind of weakness she was looking for. She was waiting. You know the gift of the arctic dragons, right?”

“Yeah, they live forever.”

Skye laughed. “Not forever, but a lot longer than any of the rest of us. So she grew old in years and strong in her magic and continued to wait. Until one day, she learned a secret about the king. He had a weakness few knew about, and she made plans to kill the king and take over. Quietly, she gathered supporters. Mostly from the arctic dragons but a few from other races too. No one wanted a weak king to reign. She planned her attack, and just before she struck, something extraordinary happened.”

“She died!” yelled Runa and laughed at her own joke.

Skye smiled and shook her head. “No, she didn’t die. How many dragons are king at once?”

“Only one.”

“Exactly. We talked about this earlier today. How does a dragon become king?”

“He turns black.”

“That’s right. On the eve of the evil witch’s attack, two more dragon kings were found.”

“How’s that possible?”

“No one knows. But the evil dragon knew she could fight a weak king, but she didn’t stand a chance against three kings. So she retreated, but instead of giving up, she gathered more supporters and divided the dragons. Soon, instead of a small fight, the dragons were at war. Everyone took a side, and no one knew who would win, the white witch or the three kings.

“But the kings discovered a source of strength the witch didn’t have. They found themselves queens that were even more powerful than themselves. Together, the six of them fought the white witch and defeated her and lived happily ever after.”

Runa bobbed her head for a second. “Who reigned then? You can’t have three kings?”

“Of course you can. They reigned together for a thousand years.”

Sid eyebrows creased together, and he frowned. Aspen was curious about what was bothering him but didn’t want to ask him about it in front of Skye and Runa.

“Bed, now,” said Aspen

Runa looked up at Aspen. “Yes, mother.” She flew off down the hall.

“Who are you sleeping with tonight?” Aspen yelled after her.

“Rowan.” She turned and glared at Aspen, misjudged her distance, and slammed right into the door. She fell but got right back up. “Where’d that door come from?”

Sid chuckled behind Aspen. “She’s a mess. You ready to go to sleep?”

Aspen took his hand. “Sure. You okay? You looked like something was bothering you.”

“Yeah. Skye modified the story a little bit. First off, not all the kings survive. In fact only one does.” He looked down at her. “Also, it’s a prophecy, not a story.”

Aspen’s stomach clenched. “Sounds scary.”

“It’s one of those stories we hear and hope never happens.” He scratched his head. “I realized something as Skye was telling the story.”

“What’s that?”

“I’m going to be a weak king.”

Aspen grasped his hands. “No, you won’t. You’ll be a great king.”

“No, Aspen, you don’t understand. Because I can’t take a queen, I literally will be physically weaker than other kings. I’ve known that since we started all this, but the prophecy worries me.”